In a thrilling clash of Italian giants, AC Milan snatched its eighth Supercoppa Italiana by astonishingly overturning a two-goal deficit to clinch a 3-2 victory against city rival Inter Milan on a nail-biting Monday night.
For the third year running, the sun-drenched deserts of Saudi Arabia played host to this prestigious tournament. This time, just like the last, the event featured a quartet of top-tier teams vying for glory. Inter Milan, through Denzel Dumfries’ two strikes, comfortably saw off Atalanta with a 2-0 win in the semifinals. Meanwhile, walking onto the pitch as AC Milan’s head coach for the first time, Sergio Conceicao orchestrated a remarkable 2-1 comeback victory over Juventus, sparking hopes of a resurgence.
With Inter nursing the absence of their prolific marksman, Marcus Thuram, due to injury, coach Simone Inzaghi rolled the dice by partnering Mehdi Taremi with the fiery Lautaro Martinez at the front. AC Milan, unluckily, couldn’t start the game with speedster Rafael Leao, who had to warm the bench due to fitness issues, leaving the dynamic duo of Christian Pulisic and Alex Jimenez as winger sentinels flanking Alvaro Morata in the attack.
The beginning of the encounter was a display of fireworks at both ends. Tijjani Reijnders tantalizingly struck the side netting with an angled shot. Not to be outdone, Federico Dimarco unleashed a ferocious strike, forcing Milan’s goalie, the ever-agile Mike Maignan, into a fabulous one-handed save.
Inter seized the initiative right before the halftime whistle, with the sharp-sighted Lautaro Martinez dispatching a clinical low shot that left Maignan grasping at shadows. The Nerazzurri swiftly doubled their advantage mere seconds into the second half, courtesy of Taremi’s eye-catching finish that capitalized on a strategic long ball.
But the Rossoneri were not about to surrender easily. On the 52nd minute mark, Theo Hernandez conjured a breathtaking free-kick that sent the ball curling past Yann Sommer, reducing the deficit to a single goal. The drama intensified, reaching a fever pitch in the 80th minute as Theo’s accurate cross provided the stage for Christian Pulisic to slot the ball neatly into the bottom corner of the net.
The climax was an absolute nail-biter. In a masterstroke of substitutions, Rafael Leao found space to repay Pulisic’s earlier assist with a clever pass, setting up Tammy Abraham for the simplest of tap-ins, sealing an unforgettable triumph.
This latest conquest ends a drought for AC Milan, recapturing the Supercoppa they last lifted in 2016, drawing them even with Inter, both now boasting eight silverware. The old lady, Juventus, still holds the leading count at nine, casting a shadow of historical supremacy over the competition.
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
Axadle international–Monitoring
